


Malasuerte

by VivArney



Category: Zorro (TV 1990)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-03
Packaged: 2018-05-11 10:58:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5624512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VivArney/pseuds/VivArney





	Malasuerte

Victoria Escalante stood at the bar of her tavern with  
a sheaf of papers and a pencil and sighed. She had  
just returned from a trip to Santa Barbara to buy some  
new furniture for the guest rooms, leaving Rosita to  
watch the tavern and now she was trying to make her  
books come out even but, for one reason or another,  
none of the numbers were cooperating. She had only  
been gone for two days and now everything was a mess.   
How could things have gotten this far out of  
balance? She'd have to talk to Rosita later.

A shadow fell on the papers and she looked up to see a  
man standing on the other side of the wide counter.

"I am sorry to disturb you, Señorita," the man said  
politely. "I was told you had rooms to rent."

"Si Señor," she said, smiling up at the man. "The  
rooms are five pesos per night."

"I would like two rooms, then, if possible, one for  
myself and one for my daughter. We have come a very  
long way."

Victoria let her dark eyes take in the man as she did  
every new guest. He was tall, almost as tall as  
Zorro, but not nearly as handsome.   
In fact, this man could only be called "plain." He  
had mousey brown hair and pale eyes that seemed to  
have almost no real color in them. He wore the suit  
and sword of a caballero. The suit was far from new,  
but clean enough.

Victoria looked down at the man's daughter. The girl  
was a smaller version of her father but with softer  
features. She couldn't have been more than ten or  
eleven years old. There was something in her  
colorless eyes, though, that made Victoria distinctly  
uncomfortable.  
Victoria cleared her throat.   
"Certainly. If you will follow me." She led them up  
the stairs to the tavern's second floor and into one  
of the rooms. "I think you will find this room quite  
comfortable, Señor..."

He gave her an embarrassed smile.   
“Forgive me. I am Pedro Ruiz and this is my daughter,  
Claudia."

She nodded. "I have a nice room just next door for  
you, Señorita," she promised the girl with a friendly  
smile.

The child didn't answer, she just looked up at  
Victoria with an intensity that made a shiver crawl up  
the tavern owner's spine.

Victoria glanced up at Ruiz in confusion, but he only  
handed her some coins and thanked her for the rooms.   
"You're welcome, Señor Ruiz," she said and left the  
room to return to the work he had interrupted.

* * * * *

Pedro Ruiz looked down at his daughter in concern.   
Her pale eyes were filled with fright. He put his arm  
around her thin shoulders and pulled her to him as he  
sat down on the bed. 

"Niña, don't look so worried," he said quietly.

"But, Papa, I am so afraid."

"Why, Mija?"

"What if Señor Montella finds us here, too?"

"He won't. He won't ever find us again." He held her  
to him. "If your mama had lived, things would be  
different," he whispered. "We wouldn't have to run  
from town to town looking for a place to live. I've  
heard wonderful things about Los Angeles. It's a good  
place - with good people. There is a man here, named  
Zorro, who protects the people of the pueblo.   
Montella won't find us here."

* * * * *

Diego de la Vega and Felipe arrived at the tavern  
later that day to find Victoria busy with several  
customers. She quickly brought them cups and a large  
pitcher of orange juice and left them for a few  
moments to deal with other customers before she  
finally sat down to talk with them.

"I want service!" an already very intoxicated man  
shouted from the far corner.

Victoria jumped, then excused herself. She went to  
the man and took one of the now empty wines bottle  
from the table. "You have had quite enough, Señor,"  
she told him quietly.

"I'll tell you when I've had enough," he roared.   
"Bring me more wine."

She glared at the man. "I won't have people like you  
in my tavern. You'd better go."

"And what will you do, if I don't?"

Diego stood and walked over to the man. "Señor, the  
señorita has asked you to leave. I suggest you do so  
\- quietly."

"You're threatening me? Diego de la Vega, the coward  
of Los Angeles?" the man laughed. He threw another  
empty wine bottle at the tall caballero.

Diego ducked and the bottle smashed harmlessly on the  
floor. "Señor, you were given a chance to leave."

"Diego, don't," Victoria warned.

The man stood then and grabbed Victoria. He held her  
close and tried to press his lips against hers,  
roughly.

Victoria yelled angrily and struggled against him.

Diego grabbed the man's arm and tried to pull him away  
from Victoria. The man cursed and gave Diego a hard  
shove toward the nearby fireplace. The other tavern  
patrons gasped as Diego desperately fought to keep his  
balance, but slipped in the spilled wine and fell  
heavily onto the tavern floor. Reacting  
instinctively, Diego blindly threw a hand behind him  
as he fell, trying to break his fall, then let out a  
pain-filled cry as he felt a large piece of the broken  
bottle slide deep into his left palm.

Victoria hit the man hard in the stomach with an  
elbow. The man doubled over and let her go as he  
tried to catch his breath.

Felipe broke another wine bottle over the man's head.   
The drunkard dropped, unconscious, to the floor as  
Felipe and Victoria rushed to Diego's side.

Sergeant Mendoza and Corporal Sepulveda standing in  
the plaza heard the sounds of the fight and ran full  
speed into the tavern. Their entrance brought instant  
quiet in the tavern. 

"Madre de Dios! What is happening here?" Mendoza  
asked as he stared at the scene in disbelief.

A man he didn't know lay on the floor beside an  
overturned corner table, Diego de la Vega, Victoria  
Escalante and Felipe were kneeling in a mess of  
spilled wine and broken glass. Don Diego, obviously  
injured was clutching his left hand, his face tight  
with pain.

"Help me, Mendoza," Victoria said and she and the  
sergeant helped Diego up onto a nearby stool and the  
sergeant asked them some quick questions. After  
receiving their answers, he ordered Sepulveda to  
arrest the unconscious man and the corporal hauled the  
man out of the tavern.

"Let me see it, Diego," Victoria urged.

Diego couldn't suppress a soft cry as Victoria took  
hold of his hand and gasped at what she saw. There  
was actually very little blood, but the way it pooled  
around the wound made her afraid to try to remove the  
glass. She frowned as she wrapped it loosely in a  
clean napkin.

"Diego, it doesn't look good," Victoria said  
worriedly. "Felipe, go for the doctor."

The mute young man nodded and ran out of the room. 

"That must really hurt, Don Diego," Mendoza said.

"Yes, Sergeant, it does," Diego admitted. He hadn't  
made another sound since his fall and he sat on the  
stool, biting his bottom lip against the pain.

Doctor Hernandez appeared with Felipe and Diego's hand  
was quickly examined. The doctor called for boiling  
water and, after a moment, removed the piece of glass  
as gently as he could.

Victoria and Felipe watched in concern as Doctor  
Hernandez poured first wine then water into the cut to  
clean it, bound the hand tightly and advised Diego to  
keep the wound as clean as possible.  
Diego nodded and thanked the doctor. He frowned.   
This cut was bad enough to hamper him if he had to  
appear as Zorro later.

"Thank you for trying to help me, Diego," Victoria  
told him. She gave him a peck on the cheek and  
smiled.

Almost everyone was too busy to notice the sad, silent  
girl standing on the landing above them.

* * * * *

 

That night, brilliant flashes of lightning tore across  
the heavy, dark clouds that hovered over the pueblo of  
Los Angeles. Thunder boomed, sounding for all the  
world like cannon fire in a massive battle. A bitter  
cold wind, its chill unusual for the normally hot  
summer months, whipped through the branches of the  
trees, making the limbs rattle like skeletal fingers  
bleached white by the desert sun.

Victoria pulled her thick shawl tighter around her  
shoulders and shivered in the biting wind. She had  
lived in Los Angeles all her life and she had never  
known it to be so cold. She pushed the heavy wooden  
doors closed with an effort and threw the strong bolt,  
closing her tavern for the night.

She took a last look into the kitchen to make certain  
the candles there were all out before she turned to  
mount the stairs to the upper floor.

Above her, the double doors that led out onto the  
balcony banged open. The wind rushed in,  
extinguishing the candles in the wagon wheel shaped  
chandelier and plunging the tavern into darkness so  
suddenly that Victoria was unable to stop her cry of  
surprise.

She placed a hand on her chest and tried to remember  
to breathe as she waited for her racing heart to slow  
to a more normal pace. She mounted the stairs, but  
had barely taken a few steps when another, almost  
blinding, flash of lightning revealed a figure -  
swathed in black - huddled on the landing. She gasped  
and, hiking up her skirts, ran up the remaining  
stairs.

"Zorro?" she cried in concern as she approached. "Are  
you all right?"

There was no reply. The figure just remained in a  
shivering crouch, shaking like a badly frightened  
child.

Victoria knelt beside the man and whispered his name  
again. Her arms reached toward him, intending a  
comforting embrace, but the doors slammed open again,  
hitting her hard in the face. Victoria screamed and  
collapsed, unconscious, on the landing.

* * * * *

Diego inched his chair a little closer to the fire in  
the library of the de la Vega hacienda and turned his  
blue eyes back to the novel he was trying to finish  
before bed. His left hand still throbbed when he  
moved it, but much of the pain had been dulled by a  
healthy dose of cactus tea.

He could hear his father moving about in the parlor,  
finishing some letters. The elder de la Vega didn't  
particularly care for storms. He was a light sleeper  
and all the noise made it almost impossible for him to  
get any rest.

Diego looked up as Felipe ran into the room, his face  
as white as death.

"What is it, Felipe?" he asked worriedly.

The mute young man signed something Diego didn't  
understand.

Diego put his book down and stood. "Calm down,  
amigo," he urged. He put a hand on Felipe's  
shoulder. "Take a deep breath."

Felipe swallowed hard and followed Diego's  
instructions.

"Now, start again."

*Fire!*

"Where?"

Felipe grabbed Diego's arm and tried to pull him in  
the direction of the kitchen.

"My father..."

Felipe shook his head. *Cave!* he signed. *Help  
Toronado!*

Diego glanced back to where his father was seated at  
the desk, then followed the boy out through the  
kitchen without another word.

Diego gasped as the near freezing wind and rain hit  
him from all sides at once, but he didn't slow his  
pace as he and Felipe ran to the hillside behind the  
house that hid the concealed entrance to the cave.

Lightning flashed and rain came down in icy needles as  
the two of them stood staring at the cave entrance.   
Diego crouched and used the bright bursts of light to  
examine the scrubby grass nearby. There was  
absolutely no evidence of any damage whatsoever.

"Felipe, are you certain this is where you saw the  
fire?" Diego asked, shouting to be heard over the wind  
and thunder.

The young man nodded emphatically and pointed, his  
dark eyes full of confusion and concern. He walked  
over and patted the undamaged foliage like a blind  
man, then looked up at his friend and shrugged. 

Diego took the his friend's arm and urged him back  
toward the hacienda. "Let's get back inside." He  
wasn't sure just what Felipe had seen, but he knew the  
boy must have seen something to frighten him so badly.

As soon as they were inside, Maria, the de la Vega's  
cook, shoved heavy mugs of hot, sweet, cocoa heavily  
laced with cinnamon into their hands and held out  
towels.

"Don Diego, you should not be out in such weather,"  
she scolded. "And with the boy, too! You should know  
better!"

"Yes, son, why did the two of you go rushing out that  
way?" Alejandro asked, coming into the kitchen with an  
armload of dry clothes.

Felipe sneezed violently, spilling some of the cocoa  
onto the floor where it mixed with the water that was  
still dripping from their bodies.

"Felipe said there was a fire near the barn," Diego  
said, changing the location slightly because of  
Maria's presence. "We probably should have taken  
coats, but I..." This time it was Diego's turn to  
sneeze. He blew into his cupped hands and shivered.

Alejandro smiled indulgently at his son. Diego and  
Felipe looked like a couple of drowned cats. "Never  
mind, son," he said quietly. "Let's just get the two  
of you out of those wet clothes before you catch  
cold."

Diego nodded and shivered again. "Yes, I think that  
would be a good idea," he agreed. He took a long pull  
from the mug and smiled. Maria's cocoa had always  
been one of his favorite treats. "Thank you for the  
cocoa, Maria," he said. He could already feel the  
warmth of the thick, creamy liquid spreading through  
him.

"You're welcome, Don Diego. I'll leave so you and  
Felipe can change here where it's warm and not track  
water and mud through the hacienda." She gave them a  
half smile and, leaving a pot of cocoa on the table,  
returned to her quarters.

Maria Cruz had worked for the de la Vega's since  
Diego's childhood and she was quite fond of the tall,  
handsome, young Don and his equally handsome father.   
She made a mental note to put some chicken on for  
broth before she went to bed. She was certain both  
Diego and Felipe would be needing some of her  
Great-grandmother's cold remedy.

"How is your hand, Diego?" Alejandro asked worriedly.   
He reached to help his son remove the wet bandages.

Diego winced as his father pulled away the final strip  
of bandage that had adhered to the edges of the cut  
and the two of them examined it. The deep cut didn't  
look infected, but it was very painful. Every  
movement seemed to make it throb.

"Let's just hope Zorro doesn't have to go out into  
this mess," Alejandro muttered quietly. He'd learned  
of his son's exploits as Zorro only a few months ago  
during that dreadful business with Gilberto and Inez  
Risendo. Inez had stolen Gilberto from the de la  
Vegas when Gilberto and Diego were born. Now, Inez  
Risendo was imprisoned at Devil's Fortress and  
Gilberto was dead.

* * * * *

 

Diego finally said good night to his father before he  
went into the library and on into the hidden cave. He  
looked around the rooms carefully, then went to put a  
heavy, horse blanket over Toronado's broad back.

The big stallion was nervous. Diego's father wasn't  
the only one who didn't like storms.

Diego patted the horse's strong neck and said some  
comforting words in a quiet voice. He very briefly  
considered getting a blanket and staying in the cave  
for the night, then decided against it. He was sure  
his father would be checking on he and Felipe during  
the night. Toronado would be all right and, besides,  
since this cave had originally been used as a hiding  
place in the event of an Indian attack, there were no  
fireplaces and it was very cold.

He patted the horse again and shivered as a blast of  
icy wind whipped through the narrow openings around  
the heavy door.

"You'll be all right, boy," Diego told the horse, then  
froze as his ears picked up the sound of footsteps  
from the cave entrance.

Thunder boomed and Toronado jumped. Diego patted the  
horse's neck again to calm him and listened  
carefully. He took his sword from the rack and a  
candle from a nearby table and walked to the cave  
entrance. He peered out into the rain, but he could  
see no tracks except those he and Felipe had made more  
than an hour earlier and even those were swiftly  
fading in the driving rain. There was no way anyone  
could have been near the cave a moment ago.

Diego shrugged and walked back to replace the sword  
and the candle. He returned to the hacienda and his  
warm bed.

* * * * *

The next morning dawned clean and bright. It was hard  
to believe that such a violent storm had swept through  
the territory the night before.

As Alejandro and Diego rode into the pueblo, they were  
surprised to find that, despite the storm's ferocity,  
it had actually done very little damage. They did  
find some lightning scarred trees and, though there  
was a lot of thick mud, things were not as bad as they  
had expected.

The two of them and Miguel Osorio, Alejandro's chief  
ranch hand, had taken a tour of their property earlier  
that morning. Some of the fences had come down and a  
few of their cattle had strayed, but here, too, the  
destruction was still not too bad.

In the pueblo, however, the evidence of the storm was  
much greater. There were broken tiles from the  
tavern, jail and garrison lying all over the plaza.   
Many of the plants Victoria hadn't been able to bring  
in from the tavern's balcony had been blown down and  
the church's heavy bell hung at an impossible angle.   
There were bits and pieces of the awnings from the  
alcalde's office and marketplace strewn around on the  
pale, plaza soil.

Sergeant Mendoza stepped out of the alcalde's office  
and approached them. "Good morning, Señores," he  
called. "I hope things are not too bad on your  
property, Don Alejandro."

"I think we were rather lucky, Sergeant," Alejandro  
said as they dismounted.

"Luckier than the alcalde, by the looks of things,"  
Diego said, nodding in the direction of the badly  
damaged jailhouse roof.

Mendoza groaned. "Si, Don Diego, he is not happy this  
morning."

"So I heard. How is he?" Alejandro asked. "Don Pedro  
said one of the rafters in his quarters fell on him  
last night."

"Si. His right shoulder is sprained and he has a very  
bad headache. Doctor Hernandez has already come and  
gone. The doctor is with Señorita Victoria now."

Diego's heart jumped. "What's happened to Señorita  
Escalante?" he asked, trying to keep the deep concern  
he felt out of his voice.

"She was found on the landing by one of her boarders."

Diego frowned. He wanted very badly to go to her, but  
he couldn't appear too worried or awkward questions  
might be asked. Finally, Alejandro went off to visit  
with the padre and he was free to go to the tavern.

It took a surprising effort for Diego to climb the  
stairs at a sedate pace - he was just a concerned  
friend coming to visit. His heart ached, but he  
didn't dare let the pain show in his face.

The doctor was just leaving when Diego reached the top  
of the stairs.

"Good morning, Diego, how is your hand?"

Diego smiled at the old physician.   
“Hello, Doctor. It's painful, but right now, I'm more  
concerned about Señorita Escalante. How is she?"

The doctor smiled. "In better shape than the alcalde,  
thank goodness. She's got a few cuts and bruises -  
the doors must have hit her with incredible force -  
but she'll be fine. She's rather upset, though. She  
says she saw Zorro here last night and, when she tried  
to touch him, he vanished."

Diego frowned. He had definitely NOT been out as  
Zorro last night.   
"He does have a talent for disappearing. I've always  
wondered how he managed it."

"Apparently, this time it was different. You'll have  
to excuse me, Don Diego, I've several other patients  
to see this morning."

"Certainly, Doctor," Diego said and stood aside to let  
the other man pass. He was more confused than ever.   
He frowned again and walked to Victoria's bedroom,  
then tapped on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Diego. May I come in?"

"Please."

He opened the door to find Victoria sitting on the  
edge of her bed. "How are you feeling?" he asked  
quietly, eyeing the small cuts on her face, arms and  
shoulders.

"Fine now."

"Doctor Hernandez told me you had a bad scare."

She took a deep breath. "I'd rather not talk about  
it, Diego, if you don't mind."

He sat down on the chair near the bed. "Perhaps you  
should, Victoria."

She ran a hand through her hair. "Very well," she  
agreed and quietly explained what she had seen.

Diego listened intently. He could certainly  
understand why she'd been reluctant to discuss her  
experience. "You said he looked hurt?"

She shrugged. "I couldn't tell. I got the impression  
there was something very wrong. Then, when I tried  
to... tried to touch him... he... he just faded  
away." Tears welled in her dark eyes.

Diego reached to take her hand and squeezed it  
reassuringly. "Victoria, I...," he began, not sure  
just what to say. He hated to see her so upset.

She took the handkerchief he offered her and dabbed at  
her eyes. "Thank you, Diego. I'm all right now."

His eyes narrowed in concern.   
"You're sure?"

Victoria nodded. "Doctor Hernandez thinks I dreamed  
the whole thing."

"Well, you must admit it is an incredible story,  
Victoria."

She glared at him. "Then, you think I dreamed it,  
too?"

"I didn't say that. I believe you did see something  
last night."

"But what was it?"

He took a deep breath. "I don't know," he admitted.   
"Why don't you let Rosita mind the tavern this morning  
while you try to get some rest."

She considered it, then laid back on the bed. "Yes, I  
think that's a good idea."

Diego stood and pulled the blanket over her. He gave  
her a smile as the left the room. "Sleep well," he  
said quietly and closed the door behind him.

* * * * *

As Diego reached the bottom of the stairs, Doctor  
Hernandez approached him, a worried expression on his  
wrinkled face. "Diego, may I have a word with you?"

"Certainly, Doctor."

"I'm afraid we've had one casualty."

Diego frowned. "Oh no. Who?"

"A visitor - one of Victoria's guests. A man named  
Pedro Ruiz. He fell from the tavern balcony during  
the storm last night."

"Was he killed by the fall?"

The old physician shook his head. "No. He was killed  
by a bullet in the back."

"Shot?"

"Yes. I found bloodstains in his room. Apparently,  
he was trying to get help when he fell. I think he  
may have been the man Victoria saw just before the  
doors struck her."

"The man she thought was Zorro?"

Hernandez nodded. "I believe so.

"Has Victoria been told?"

The old men shook his head. "Not yet. What worries  
me most, Diego, is that the man had a child, a little  
girl. She's in the far room. Her father paid for the  
rooms in advance, but I don't like leaving her alone  
at a time like this."

Diego nodded and laid a hand on the older man's  
shoulder. "I'll have a word with my father, perhaps  
we can take the girl in until we are able to contact  
another member of her family."

Hernandez smiled. "Thank you, Diego."

"I'd like to see his room and speak to his daughter,  
as well. Perhaps I can discover who shot him."

"I'm sure his daughter would appreciate that."

Diego said goodbye to the old man and entered the dead  
man's room. Aside from a trail of bloodstains on the  
floor, he found few clues. From some papers in the  
man's small satchel, he learned that Pedro Ruiz had  
come from San Francisco but other papers told him that  
the man and his daughter had been travelling for some  
time. There was a small cache of money - piteously  
small for a man trying to support himself and a  
child. He replaced the items and went into the girl's  
room. Rosita was with the child and he asked her to  
remain in the room while he asked her some questions.

Rosita nodded.

He crouched beside the weeping girl. "Claudia, I know  
this is a very bad time for you, but I need your  
help. If I'm going to learn who killed your father,  
there are some questions I must ask," he said softly.

The girl's eyes finally turned and focused on Diego.   
"Yes," she said absently.

"Do you know who might have tried to harm your  
father?" 

She nodded.

"What is his name?"

"Señor Montella."

"Do you know why Señor Montella was trying to hurt you  
and your father?"

"He says... He says I'm his daughter."

"Are you?"

Claudia shook her head, then shrugged. "No. He tried  
to take my mother away, but she didn't want to go with  
him and Papa wouldn't let him take her."

Diego frowned. "Do you know what this Señor Montella  
looks like?"

"Yes. He's the man who made you hurt your hand."

"Did your father try to get help to keep Montella  
away?"

Claudia nodded. "He wanted to talk to Zorro, but he  
couldn't find him."

"Well, I'm afraid Zorro can be a very difficult man to  
locate. I'm sure he'll be sorry he wasn't able to  
help you and your father."

"Papa was so sure Señor Montella wouldn't follow us  
here," she said, bursting into tears again.

He bit his lower lip and put a hand on the girl's  
shoulder. ”Do you have any other family?" he asked.   
"Is there someone we can notify?"

"No. Only Papa," she told him finally.

"Can I ask you to stay here with Señorita Avila while  
I try to find you a place to stay?"

She nodded. 

Diego stood. He handed some coins to Rosita. "You'll  
see she gets anything she needs, won't you?"

Rosita nodded and Diego left the room.

* * * * *

"Something very odd happened during that storm,  
Felipe. I've spoken to at least twenty people today  
and almost all of them had an experience like ours,"  
Diego said in the cave that afternoon.

The younger man nodded. *Ghosts!*

Diego chuckled and shook his head.   
"No, I don't think so."

Felipe looked confused and signed. *Zorro?*

"Yes - well we both know Zorro wasn't out last night.   
It was Pedro Ruiz that Victoria saw on the landing.   
I've asked my father to tell her what happened."

Felipe signed something.

"Yes, well. I keep thinking about that poor girl,  
Claudia, she's alone now."

*Like me?*

Diego nodded. "Yes, amigo, just like you."

*Alcalde arrest man?*

Diego shook his head. "He refused. He did fine him  
for the disturbance in the tavern, but he claims there  
isn't enough evidence to hold him for Pedro Ruiz'  
murder."

Felipe banged his fist down on the table in  
frustration.

"I agree, amigo. We'll let Claudia rest tonight and  
then bring her to the hacienda tomorrow. If Montella  
tries anything here, we'll be able to protect her."

Felipe made a "Z" in the air.

Diego grinned. "Of course."

* * * * *

In the pueblo, the tall man who had manhandled  
Victoria the day before was speaking to two  
middle-aged women.

The taller of the two, Teresa Moreno, was an ugly,  
highly opinionated, gossipy woman with a laugh like a  
braying jackass, who smoked her husband's cigars  
openly. She listened intently, always eager to hear  
the latest tidbit of bad news about other members of  
the pueblo's populace.

The other woman, Olivia Diaz, wasn't nearly as severe  
as Señora Moreno but she was probably the only person  
willing to admit to being her friend. She too was  
eternally fond of gossip and always seemed to be after  
Doctor Hernandez with some symptom or another that she  
was certain must be fatal.

The man spoke quietly to the women for several moments  
then moved away.

* * * * *

Later that afternoon, Diego looked up from his  
experiment at the sound of his father's voice calling  
his name. He set down the beaker he'd been holding  
and he and Felipe waited while Diego peered out the  
viewing hole to make certain his father was alone  
before the two of them slipped out through the narrow  
door at the back of the library fireplace.

"Where have you two been?" Alejandro asked as he  
entered the dining room from the kitchen. Before  
Diego could respond, how- ever, his father waved the  
answer away. "Never mind. Have you heard the news?"

Diego shook his head.

"There's trouble brewing in the plaza. That girl,  
Claudia Ruiz, they're convinced she's the cause of all  
the troubles lately."

"How can they blame this string of bad luck on an  
eleven year old girl? It's a ridiculous notion."

Alejandro nodded, his dark eyes sparking in anger.   
"Of course, it's ridiculous, Diego, but Teresa Moreno  
and her usual band of dried up, old, superstitious,  
gossips have decided she is a witch, or worse, and  
they're planning to run her out of town."

Diego knew Teresa Moreno and her gaggle of women far  
too well. She'd brought Diego several articles full  
of malicious gossip in the last few years, demanding  
that he publish them in The Guardian and complaining  
loudly when he refused. She'd also written letters to  
the bishop in the past, maligning the works of Padre  
Benitez on behalf of the poor and the Indians. She  
stood fully behind the alcalde - exposing any minor or  
major offenses to him in an effort to interest Ignacio  
DeSoto in her equally unpleasant daughter, Bonita.

Ignacio DeSoto, while he did occasionally use the  
information given him by Señora Moreno, avoided Bonita  
Moreno whenever possible. Alejandro de la Vega,  
normally friendly with the other citizens of the  
pueblo, had been known to cross the street rather than  
speak to the annoying woman

"Surely, the alcalde won't let that happen."

Alejandro slammed his hand down on the heavy dining  
room table in frustration. "Diego, you know better  
than that! Now, I'm going into town to help that poor  
child. Are you coming?"

"I don't know whether I'd be of much help, Father - at  
least as Diego." He grinned and winked meaningfully.

The elder de la Vega nodded his understanding. "Come  
along, Felipe."

Diego watched his father and the younger man leave the  
hacienda and ran his good hand through his dark hair  
before he rushed to the cave and changed. He quickly  
saddled Toronado and was off to the pueblo.

The scene in the plaza was frightening. Alejandro,  
Felipe, Victoria, Doctor Hernandez, Padre Benitez and  
a very few others were all that stood between the girl  
and the growing mob.

The alcalde and his lancers were nowhere in sight, but  
Teresa Moreno and Olivia Diaz were standing off to one  
side urging the others on with shouts and dire  
warnings about the future safety of the pueblo's  
children. 

Zorro snapped his whip over the heads of the crowd and  
the plaza grew suddenly quiet. "People of Los  
Angeles," he shouted. "Stop for one moment and  
consider what you are about to do. This girl has done  
no harm."

"What about Don Trujillo's calves?" someone shouted.

"And Jose Rivas' well?" yelled another.

"And the storm that damaged the crops the very day she  
arrived?" shouted still another.

"And Don Diego's hand?"

"And the boy who died?"

Doctor Hernandez shook his head. "This girl has only  
been in the pueblo for two days. Ricardo Sanchez has  
been ill for months..." he began, before the crowd's  
shouts drowned him out.

Zorro snapped his whip again, trying to bring some  
sort of order to the situation. He hadn't seen the  
villagers so stirred up since the bandit who called  
himself "The Falcon" had tried to start a rebellion  
against the alcalde a couple of years earlier.   
Clearly, for now, the best solution would be to take  
the girl somewhere safe and let things settle down.

Alejandro must have come to the same conclusion at  
almost the same instant. He said something to Felipe,  
Victoria and the doctor and, taking the girl by the  
hand, he led the way to where Zorro still sat atop  
Toronado.

"Zorro, you must take the child out of Los Angeles,"  
Alejandro shouted. "My son is at the hacienda. He'll  
look after her until we can calm this mob."

Zorro nodded in agreement but, as he reached down to  
help the girl up onto the saddle with him, a shot rang  
out and the man in black gasped and clutched at the  
upper part of his left arm. Dizzy with pain, he  
looked up to see the alcalde standing on the roof of  
the jail with a smoking musket.

Victoria let out a scream as Doctor Hernandez rushed  
forward.

"I hit him!" the white haired man crowed  
triumphantly. "I hit Zorro!"

"No, Doctor," Zorro said, turning Toronado away from  
the older man.   
“It's only a graze."

"You'd better go quickly,"

Alejandro advised. "Before the alcalde has a chance  
to reload."

Zorro took a deep breath and nodded. He pulled the  
girl up behind him on the saddle and, turning the big  
stallion, he rode off.

Alejandro and Felipe pushed their way through the  
crowd and Alejandro mounted his horse. 

Teresa Moreno snatched at the reins, but Felipe was  
suddenly in her way and pulled the reins out of her  
hands. Felipe quickly slid onto his pinto pony and  
they rode out of the pueblo. A few of the villagers  
ran behind them, but they quickly slowed and returned  
to the pueblo.

* * * * *

For Zorro, the two mile ride back to the hidden cave  
seemed to take only a moment and he assumed he must  
have drifted in and out of consciousness at least once  
along the way. It felt as though his left arm was on  
fire, but a quick glance told him the wound was more  
of a deep scratch than anything else. He lowered the  
child to the ground in the courtyard of the de la Vega  
hacienda. "If you go inside, the de la Vega's cook  
will look after you. You'll be safe here," he told  
her. 

Toronado carried him into the cave and Zorro slid down  
off the big horse's back. He walked over to one of  
the lab tables and dug some bandages out of a wooden  
box. He used his other arm to strip off his mask and  
gloves then pulled his shirt off and clenched his  
teeth against the pain he knew was coming. He took a  
deep breath, but he couldn't suppress a groan as he  
laid a thick square of cloth against the wound.

He heard his father calling him from the hacienda,  
but, he wasn't certain his father was alone and, at  
the moment, he was in no condition to leave the cave.   
If anyone who'd been in the plaza, saw Diego with the  
same wound, his secret would be revealed.

Felipe appeared a moment later, his thin face full of  
concern. He signed worriedly at the older man.

Diego nodded. "Yes, Felipe, I'm all right. Help me  
with this bandage, will you? I've got to get into the  
house, before the alcalde arrives."

*Doctor?*

"No, it's only a scratch."

Felipe frowned, but picked up a strip of cloth and  
tied it tightly around his friend's arm. His stomach  
tightened as Diego winced at the added pressure.   
Felipe ran to get the clothes Diego had worn before  
and helped his friend into them. In a few moments,  
Diego slipped into the hacienda.

* * * * *

Claudia hung back as Maria led her into the de la  
Vega's kitchen. "I shouldn't be here," she whispered,  
nervously.

"Why not?" Alejandro asked as he strode into the  
room. "You've every right to be here."

The young girl jumped and stared up at the handsome  
caballero. She shrank back from him in terror.

"Oh, niña, you should never be afraid of Don  
Alejandro," Maria said, reassuringly. "He and his  
son, Diego are good men. They would never allow  
anything to happen to you."

Her father's death, the terrible claims of the two  
old women and the frightening scene in the plaza that  
afternoon had been too much for the girl and she burst  
into tears.

The cook clucked sympathetically and took the girl  
into her arms.

Alejandro could see the girl was still frightened of  
him so he let the old woman try to calm her while he  
poured out glasses of juice and waited for the girl to  
regain her composure before he led her out of the  
kitchen. After a few moments, Maria finally wiped the  
tears from the child's eyes and kissed her gently on  
the forehead.

Diego and Felipe were in the library when Alejandro  
and Claudia entered from the kitchen. Diego waved  
away the glass of juice his father offered him.

Claudia sat stiffly on the sofa, her eyes filled with  
a deep sadness that should have been impossible for  
someone so young. She took the drink Alejandro held  
out to her and sat holding it as she stared off into  
space.

Felipe frowned. *Not good.*

Diego sighed. "I don't know what more we can do for  
her, Felipe," he admitted.

They heard a shout and Miguel came running in from the  
courtyard. "Patron!" he cried breathlessly.

Claudia stiffened and shied away from the man's sudden  
shout.

Alejandro stood. "What is it, Miguel?" Miguel had  
worked for the de la Vega's for more than a decade and  
Alejandro had never seen him so upset.

"The alcalde - he's coming, Señor," Miguel reported.   
"And he has two lancers with him."

Alejandro turned to Diego, but his son was already in  
motion.

"Felipe, take Claudia to her room, please," Diego told  
the younger man. "I'm not sure what DeSoto is up to,  
but, after what happened in the plaza this afternoon,  
I think we'd better keep Claudia out of sight until we  
can find out his plans."

Felipe nodded his understanding. He took the girl's  
hand and with gentle, but firm, pressure hauled her  
off the sofa and out of the room.

"Thank you, Miguel," Alejandro said. "We can handle  
things from here."

Miguel nodded and left the room as well.

The front door of the hacienda burst open and the de  
la Vegas heard the screech of protesting wood.  
"Alcalde, what is the meaning of this?" Alejandro  
bellowed as Ignacio DeSoto stepped across the  
threshold.

"I've come to take Claudia Ruiz into custody."

"Whatever for?" Alejandro asked.

"Her presence is causing disturbances in the pueblo."

"Alcalde, surely you must realize Señora Moreno's  
accusations are utterly ridiculous."

"What I realize, Diego, is the danger Claudia Ruiz  
represents to the safety of the citizens of Los  
Angeles."

"Danger? What danger? She's eleven years old!"

"Don Alejandro, her presence in the plaza this  
afternoon nearly lead to a riot."

"Teresa Moreno and Olivia Diaz were directly  
responsible for that disgusting scene!" Alejandro  
snapped angrily.

"Father, please. Alcalde, we would like Claudia to  
remain with us until her family can be located."

DeSoto shook his head. "No. I've already given  
Sergeant Mendoza his orders."

"What orders?"

"Actually, Don Alejandro, what happens to Claudia Ruiz  
is none of your concern." DeSoto smiled then glared  
up at Diego. "Let's just say that she'll be someone  
else's problem from now on."

Alejandro started forward clearly furious at Ignacio  
DeSoto's decision. "If you harm that child..."

"Calm yourself, Señor. No harm will come to the girl  
\- unless Zorro interferes with my lancers, of course,  
then, I'm afraid, I can't guarantee her safety."   
DeSoto's blue eyes bored into Diego's slightly darker  
ones. "Or his."

* * * * *

In the corridor, Felipe frowned as he listened to the  
angry voices. Alcalde DeSoto had been in a foul mood  
since his recent injury and he didn't seem to be the  
least bit interested in anything Diego and his father  
were trying to tell him.

The alcalde's threat worried him. DeSoto had managed  
to shoot Zorro during that scene in the plaza. Diego  
hadn't taken the time to do more than bandage the  
wound and Felipe knew his friend was in no shape to  
deal with the alcalde and his men.

Felipe glanced down at the girl standing beside him.   
Claudia's pale eyes were wide with terror and her thin  
body was trembling. He made his decision.

He stopped only long enough to scribble a quick note.   
Then, leaving the note on Diego's bed, he and the girl  
slipped out of the hacienda.

* * * * *

As soon as DeSoto and his lancers left the hacienda,  
Diego suddenly paled and grabbed the back of a chair  
and might have fallen if his father hadn't forced him  
to sit  
down.

"What is it?"

"It's nothing, Father. I'm all right."

"No. You're not all right. Take off your jacket -  
let me see your arm."

"It's just a scratch, Father," Diego protested.

Alejandro lowered his voice to a whisper, but his dark  
eyes were filled with anger. "You may be Zorro, but  
you're still my son. Now, take off that jacket."

Diego sighed. "Very well, Father, but not here,  
someone might see."

Alejandro nodded and helped his son out of the chair  
and down the corridor to his room.

Diego sat down on his bed and Alejandro helped him  
remove his jacket. The white shirt beneath it was  
soaked with blood.

"Diego, if the alcalde had stayed a few moments  
longer, Zorro's secret would have been discovered."

"I know," Diego said in a painfilled whisper.

Alejandro helped his son out of the blood stained  
shirt and peered at the crude, hastily applied  
bandage. The bandage was soaked with blood. 'How  
many times over the years have I missed noticing my  
own son's injuries?' he wondered as he went to the  
wash stand. He filled the bowl from the pitcher and  
carried the bowl back to the bed and set it down on  
the nightstand.

The two of them were quiet as Alejandro cleaned the  
gash in his son's arm and rebandaged it, using strips  
torn from an old shirt of Diego's from the wardrobe.   
Diego had somehow gotten paint onto one sleeve, but  
the body of the shirt was clean and he didn't want to  
answer any questions from Maria if he started  
rummaging in the box of bandages she kept in the  
kitchen.

Finally, satisfied with his attempt at first-aid,  
Alejandro ordered Diego to lie down and rest while he  
dealt with the ruined shirt, bandages and bloody water  
in the washbowl.

Dizzy from pain, Diego was too tired to argue with his  
father and he was soon fast asleep. Neither of them  
noticed the folded piece of paper that had fluttered  
to the floor.

* * * * *

Felipe and Claudia stopped beside a creek to rest and  
drink some of the clean, cool water.

Whenever Claudia balked at going on, Felipe  
insistently urged her forward.

The old abandoned windmill wasn't very far, but it was  
far enough to keep the lancers from finding Claudia  
and his note would lead Diego and Alejandro to them  
after Diego had rested.

As they passed the north edge of the de la Vegas'  
land, his pinto pony reared suddenly, throwing both of  
them to the ground and tore off at a fast gallop.

Felipe stared in disbelief as his horse sped off down  
the hill. Something must have frightened the animal  
but, looking around him, he couldn't see what it had  
been.

As he stood, pulling Claudia to her feet, the ground  
shook violently beneath them and it was all they could  
do to remain on their feet.

* * * * *

At the de la Vega hacienda, the rumbling motion of the  
earthquake woke Diego.

His first concern was Toronado. If the cave  
collapsed, the big stallion would be trapped, or  
worse. 

He could hear his father calling for Maria and,  
ignoring the burning pain in his arm, he got up and  
was about to go make certain Toronado was safe when he  
spotted Felipe's note. As he read it, his eyes filled  
with concern. 

If Felipe and Claudia had managed to make it to the  
windmill, they were probably safe enough. Felipe knew  
what to do in an earthquake, but the old mines were  
between the de la Vega hacienda and the windmill and  
the long abandoned tunnels were always caving in.

He dressed as quickly as he could and, after a word to  
his father, headed for the hidden cave where he  
changed quickly and mounted Toronado. 

* * * * *

Felipe froze as he heard the unmistakable click of a  
musket being cocked. Beside him, Claudia, too, froze  
in her tracks and turned. Felipe followed her motion  
and saw Ignacio DeSoto standing five feet behind them.

"I think this has gone on long enough, don't you?"  
DeSoto asked. "I knew the de la Vegas would try  
something."

Felipe shook his head and tapped his chest.

"Your idea? I don't believe you."

Felipe nodded and slapped his chest proudly.

"Where were you taking the girl?"

Felipe frowned, pretending he hadn't understood.

DeSoto's pistol didn't waver.   
“Don't play games with me, boy. I know you  
understand. Now, where are you taking the girl?"

Felipe shrugged. He pointed over his shoulder to the  
berry bushes heavy with fruit and pretended to eat."

The alcalde's face reddened with fury and, just as his  
finger squeezed the trigger, the earth shook again  
violently, his shot went wild and his fury turned to  
terror as the ground began to crumble beneath their  
feet.

Felipe shoved the girl away from him as he and the  
alcalde disappeared into the blackness.

Claudia stood on the edge of the gaping hole in the  
ground and stared down at the crumbled rocks and  
twisted bodies beneath her. 

What was she going to do? She looked around her in  
confusion. Felipe's horse had taken off down the hill  
and she could see no sign of the alcalde's horse. She  
had a vague idea of her location, but was too afraid  
to leave Felipe lying there in a heap.

She knelt on the edge of the opening and called to  
Felipe, but the mute young man didn't respond. She  
was afraid to get too close to the edge - afraid she  
might fall in with the unmoving figures below.

She stood and started running. She finally came upon  
a man dressed all in black, riding a huge black  
stallion. "Zorro!" she called in relief, running  
forward.

"Claudia," he called, dropping off the big horse and  
running forward. Then, noting the girl's appearance,  
he frowned. "Are you all right?"

"Yes. Felipe and the alcalde..." she paused to catch  
her breath. 

"They're hurt," she began then explained what had  
happened before, during and after the earthquake.

 

"Can you remember where they are?"

She nodded and he remounted Toronado, pulling her up  
behind him.

* * * * *

Felipe woke to find himself lying in a pile of  
rubble. He coughed dust from his lungs and tried to  
sit up. The motion made him grit his teeth and almost  
cry out. There was something wrong with his right  
leg. 

Beside him, he saw a shock of white hair emerging from  
beneath a rotted timber. The alcalde must have fallen  
into the tunnel with him. He tried to pull his  
injured leg out from beneath the wood that pinned it,  
but the pain was too great. All he could do was wait  
for Claudia to get help. He wondered where the girl  
was.

He took a deep breath and, reaching over, managed to  
push the pieces of wood away from the alcalde. Aside  
from a nasty looking scrape on the alcalde's cheek, he  
didn't see any damage to the alcalde's face or head,  
but his arm - the one he'd injured in the storm - lay  
at an odd angle.

Felipe tried his best to relax. He knew Diego and his  
father would find the note and come this way looking  
for them. He just had to be patient.

* * * * *

Zorro and Claudia met Don Alejandro and Miguel Osorio  
as they rode toward the cave in.

"Don Alejandro!" Zorro called. The man in black  
quickly passed Claudia's story on to the elder de la  
Vega. "Please send Miguel for a wagon. If Felipe and  
the alcalde have fallen into one of the abandoned  
tunnels, they're sure to be injured."

Alejandro nodded and, after a few quick words to his  
chief ranch hand, he followed Zorro and the girl to  
the spot where Felipe and DeSoto had fallen.

Zorro helped Claudia down before  
he swung down from Toronado's broad back. He walked  
carefully to the edge of the wide opening and peered  
down into the darkness. He didn't like what he saw.

The ground all around the large hole was thin and  
crumbling. He frowned. The deep cut on his left hand  
and the gash on his arm were going to be a problem.   
He looked around him worriedly. He had to find a way  
to pull the injured men up without causing too much  
damage to his earlier injuries. It wasn't the pain  
that was bothering him, he'd survived worse, but the  
wounds on his hand and arm had stopped bleeding and he  
knew from experience that too much strain could start  
the blood flowing again and, if anyone except his  
father and Felipe saw blood coming from his left hand,  
his secret might be revealed.

Finally, he nodded. There was an enormous tree not  
far from the collapsed tunnel. He wondered if it  
would be strong enough to help them rescue Felipe and  
the alcalde. He asked Alejandro to pull some ropes  
from their saddlebags and walked over to examine the  
tree. He jumped up and swung from the branch he  
intended to use. The limb did not give.

"What are you planning?" Alejandro asked the other  
man in concern. 

"The alcalde's been trying to hang Zorro for years.   
Today he gets his chance."

"Excuse me?"

Zorro quickly explained his plans and Alejandro nodded  
his approval. Alejandro frowned as he bent to look  
over the edge of the pit and was relived to see  
Felipe's dark eyes looking up at him expectantly. He  
could see where the younger man's leg was pinned  
beneath the heavy timbers. Felipe's eyes were filled  
with concern and pain, but at least he was conscious.   
The alcalde, however didn't seem to be so lucky.  
Zorro went back to Toronado and looped the end of one  
of the ropes over the saddlehorn, then threw both  
ropes over the tree limb he'd tested. He handed both  
ends of the second rope to Alejandro. Rescuing Felipe  
and DeSoto was not going to be easy, even with his  
father and Claudia to help. Finally, he crouched down  
to speak to Claudia. "We need your help, little  
one," he said softly. "Felipe's leg is pinned. Don  
Alejandro and I are too heavy to go down into the  
hole, our weight may be too much for those rotten  
timbers. Can you do it?"

Claudia took one look at her friend lying down in the  
pit and nodded.

"Good girl." Zorro smiled and tied the coil of rope  
around the girl's chest. He took a few moments to  
explain what she was to do once she reached the bottom  
of the pit then asked, "Are you ready?"

Claudia nodded again. Dirt and small stones rained  
down on the injured men in the pit as, with Zorro and  
Alejandro's help, the girl slid feet first into the  
wide opening. 

As soon as her feet touched bottom, Claudia looked up  
at Zorro then stepped out of the rope and looped it  
around the end of the beam pinning Felipe's leg.

"Pull, Zorro!" she cried as she stepped back out of  
the way.

Zorro patted Toronado's flank and, with gentle words,  
urged the black stallion forward.

Alejandro stood at the edge of the pit and watched the  
heavy beam rise into the air. As soon as Felipe waved  
that he was clear, Alejandro told Zorro to stop  
Toronado. The elder de la Vega dropped a second  
looped rope down into pit and told Claudia to take it  
to Felipe.

The mute young man pulled the loop down over his  
shoulders and around his chest before he waved again.

Alejandro and Zorro pulled and their friend slowly  
rose out of the pit. Zorro held the rope still as  
Alejandro moved forward to help Felipe out onto the  
solid ground. Alejandro helped the younger man out of  
the rope and patted him on the shoulder reassuringly  
before he went quickly back to the edge of the hole.  
Felipe lay on the grass panting from the exertion and  
pain, but there was no time to do any more for him  
now, they had to get DeSoto out of the pit before it  
caved in.

Luckily, there was no heavy debris covering the  
alcalde. Again, Alejandro dropped the second rope  
down into the hole.

The little girl struggled to lift the white haired  
man's heavy torso high enough to loop the rope around  
his chest. Again and again she tried, but the man's  
limp body was too heavy for her to lift on her own.

Alejandro frowned as he watched her struggle. "It's  
not working, Zorro. DeSoto's just too heavy for her."

Zorro swore under his breath. He hadn't counted on  
that. "Let go of the rope, Claudia," he called.   
Then, with a swirl of black he slid down the rope  
holding the timber and landed beside the girl. Moving  
quickly, he looped the rope around Claudia's chest and  
called for Alejandro to pull her up. 

The alcalde stirred as he regained consciousness. He  
opened his pale blue eyes to see Zorro standing over  
him. He struggled to raise his pistol, forgetting  
that he'd already fired it before the earthquake.   
"Zorro!"

Zorro turned from watching Claudia's ascent and his  
lips formed a thin line. He'd hoped to have the  
alcalde out of the hole and back on solid ground  
before he woke. "Calm yourself, Alcalde," he  
advised. "We'll have you out of here in a moment."

"You're lying, as usual. You're going to leave me  
here to die."

"Alcalde, if that were my intention...." 

DeSoto stood and pulled a knife from his sling. "I  
have you now, Zorro, and I'm going to arrest whoever  
it is that's helping you above. It will be a pleasure  
to put a noose around their necks as well as yours."

"Alcalde, as usual, you're jumping to conclusions."

"Who is helping you?"

Zorro frowned. He couldn't allow DeSoto to cause  
trouble for his family. He moved his left hand  
experimentally. The palm ached terribly and it was  
wet and sticky within his heavy glove. He had to do  
something and quickly. "I hate to have to do this,  
señor, but you've forced my hand."

"Do what, Zorro?"

DeSoto never saw the black gloved fist strike his jaw,  
but he felt it's effects as he dropped like a stone  
onto the debris ridden floor.

Alejandro dropped the rope he'd used to pull Claudia  
to the surface. Zorro quickly bent to loop it around  
the alcalde's limp body. "No wonder Claudia was  
having so much trouble," he mumbled with a grunt.   
"Alcalde, I do believe you've gained some weight in  
the last few months."

He grabbed the first rope and easily pulled himself up  
out of the hole, then he and Alejandro pulled the  
alcalde up onto the grass covered hillside.

Doctor Hernandez and some of the de la Vega ranch  
hands arrived within a few moments and after the  
doctor had examined them, the two injured men were  
quickly loaded onto a wagon and driven away. 

"You'll see Claudia gets back to the hacienda?" Zorro  
asked his father as, ignoring the pain in his arm and  
hand, he recoiled the ropes they'd used and returned  
them to his saddlebag.

Alejandro nodded. "Where are you off to?"

"To deal with the man who caused all this."

The elder de la Vega nodded and watched proudly as his  
son mounted Toronado and rode off.

"Come along, Claudia," Alejandro said tiredly. He  
walked back to his creamy mare, Dulcinea, and lifted  
the child onto the saddle then hoisted himself up  
behind her. "Let's see if Maria has a flan for us  
today." 

* * * * *

Zorro rode into the pueblo. 

Silently, he slipped into the small house Teresa  
Moreno and her husband occupied. The woman let out a  
small shriek of surprise as he entered the kitchen.

"Zorro?!" she cried in surprise.

Zorro saluted the old woman with a gloved hand.   
"Señora."

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to speak to you and Señora Diaz about that  
incident in the plaza. I want to know why you two  
caused it."

"We... That child is dangerous."

"Dangerous? How?"

"She's been the cause of much trouble, Zorro. We  
can't let her evil corrupt Los Angeles."

"And how do you come by these accusations?"

"Señor Montella. He said he knew them in San  
Francisco. The child killed her mother and Pedro Ruiz  
ran away with the child because he did not want to  
face the law and the fact that his child is evil -  
malasuerte!"

Zorro shook his head sadly.   
“Children are many things, Señora, but they are never  
evil," he told her earnestly.

"But it all seemed so right... Don Diego's hand, Don  
Trujillo's calves, Jose Rivas' well, the storm and the  
boy who died. Everything Señor Montella claimed - it  
came true."

"You and I have spoken of this before. Gossip can  
prove very costly, Señora. Your superstitions and  
malicious gossip very nearly cost that child her  
life."

"And endangered yours as well." The old woman hung  
her head in shame. "You are right, Señor Zorro. If  
Don Diego will allow it, I will post a notice in The  
Guardian revealing my terrible shame. It will never  
be enough to make up for what I've done."

Zorro nodded. "I think a simple apology will do, but  
I'm sure Don Diego will be more than willing to  
publish a public apology. I only hope that will be  
enough."

"Zorro, what will become of the child?"

"I don't know. She has no family except her father.   
Word will be sent to their home in San Francisco.   
Perhaps someone will come for her."

"And Señor Montella?"

Zorro's hand went to the hilt of his sword. "He has  
caused a great deal of grief for Claudia and her  
father. The law will deal with Señor Montella,  
Señora, with my help." 

"Where is the child now?"

"In hiding. It seems the alcalde is intent on seeing  
she leaves Los Angeles."

"I am to blame for that, as well."

"We can only hope no harm comes to the child, Señora."

"I have done such terrible things,"  
Teresa Moreno said, her dark eyes filling.

"Perhaps you will learn from this incident," Zorro  
told her quietly. 

"Now, I must locate Señor Montella."

Without another word, he slipped out the way he had  
come and Teresa Moreno dropped into a chair to weep.

* * * * *

It didn't take Zorro long to locate Montella. He was  
sitting at a table in the tavern celebrating the scene  
in the plaza. Zorro slipped into the kitchen and  
found Victoria standing over a pot of bubbling stew.

"Victoria?"

She whirled, put down her spoon and ran into his  
arms. "Zorro! I was so frightened. Are you all  
right? I thought the alcalde shot you. How are  
Felipe and Claudia? I heard there was a cave in. Was  
anyone hurt?"

He smiled. "So many questions. Don't worry, mi  
preciosa, Felipe has a broken leg, but Doctor  
Hernandez is sure it will set properly. Claudia is  
all right and so am I. Much better, in fact, for  
having seen your lovely face," he said as he cupped  
her cheek with a gloved hand.

Victoria clutched his lean, well-muscled body to hers  
with such ferocity that the man in black couldn't  
suppress a grunt. She always felt save in his arms -  
as though his very touch could save her from any  
danger.

He chuckled and pulled away slightly to kiss her  
tenderly on the lips. After a moment, he forced  
himself to pull away from her completely. "I'm sorry,  
Victoria. As much as I am enjoying this, I do have  
work to do."

She sighed. "It's always the same, isn't it?" she  
whispered.

He gave her another long, lingering kiss before he ran  
his gloved fingers through her dark curls. "I've  
promised there will come a time for us and there will  
be - one day."

She squeezed his hand and stretched up to kiss him  
again. "I know."

He smiled. "I could never ask for more."

Victoria took a deep breath. "So, what brings you to  
the tavern tonight, Señor Zorro?"

"I've come to deal with the man responsible for that  
scene in the plaza today."

"I thought Teresa Moreno and Olivia Diaz caused that."

He shook his head. "No, they were accomplices, but  
they did not cause that riot."

"Then who?"

"Sarapio Montella."

"The man who grabbed me and hurt Diego?"

He nodded. "He tried to steal Pedro Ruiz's wife and,  
when she wouldn't go with him, he killed her and  
blamed it on Claudia. She and her father have been  
running ever since. He killed Pedro here in the  
tavern the night of the storm."

She nodded. "But, Zorro, I heard no shots."

"The thunder from the storm must have muffled them."

Her face filled with concern. "When I thought it was  
you on the landing I..."

Zorro embraced her cheek. "I know. It was Pedro Ruiz  
that you saw."

"Have you come to apprehend Montella, then?"

He nodded. "I've convinced Sergeant Mendoza of my  
findings and he should be arriving in just a few  
moments."

"To give you time to "soften him up" for the lancers?"  
she asked with a giggle.

He couldn't help chuckling. "You could say that."

"The alcalde was sure the girl may know how to locate  
a fortune in gold." 

Zorro frowned. "I'd wondered why he was so intent on  
capturing her. More of Montella's lies, of course.   
I'm sorry, Victoria, I must leave as soon as I've  
delivered Montella to Sergeant Mendoza."

"I understand."

He gave her a last, quick kiss and stepped into the  
tavern. It took only a few moments to subdue Sarapio  
Montella - the brigand was drunk and no swordsman. As  
soon as Montella was safely on his way to the jail,  
Zorro rushed to Toronado and rode out of the pueblo.

* * * * *

Alejandro was waiting for him in the cave when he  
arrived. He removed his mask and smiled down at his  
father as he swung down from the tall stallion.

Alejandro pointed to the spot of wet on the black silk  
sleeve. "Off with your shirt, son," he ordered as he  
reached for the wooden box of bandages. Diego didn't  
argue. He did as he was told and walked over and sat  
on a stool near a table. 

He tried not to wince as Alejandro wiped away the  
blood and rebandaged both his son's wounds without a  
word.

"How is Felipe?"

"Sleeping. I gave him some of that cactus tea of  
yours and he dropped right off. You should follow his  
example."

"In a few moments, Father. It seems "the malasuerte"  
has run it's course," Diego said with a slight smile.

"Has it, son?"

"Don't tell me you believe in that jinx nonsense."

Alejandro shrugged. "Well, it is odd that so many bad  
things happened in such a short time."

"Bad things happen, Father. It was superstition that  
made them all seem so sinister."

"Maria has asked Padre Benitez to say a special prayer  
for the pueblo at mass tomorrow, just in case. It  
couldn't hurt."

Diego chuckled. "No, Father, it couldn't hurt."


End file.
